The Berry Market War
Local fruit growers reject lowball prices from Spokane wholesalers, betting on the premium quality of the Kennewick crop.
The story, cleaned up
A cleaned-up reading of the newspaper page: spelling and layout repaired, one story lifted off a crowded page. It follows the original closely but it is not a transcription. The original page is below; read it if a detail matters.
L. A. Jarnagan, manager of the Kennewick Fruit Growers Association, returned this morning from Spokane, where he had gone to look after the strawberry market. He was discouraged to learn that California berries had flooded the market to such an extent they were being offered on the streets at twelve-and-a-half cents a box and were considered dead stock. He was informed that a four-horse wagon load had been dumped into the garbage pile the day before. Notwithstanding these bad reports, he visited the wholesale fruit district and was offered $6 a crate for all the berries he could deliver by the 5th of May. He became so impressed with the market conditions that he refused these offers and demanded $8 a crate for Kennewick berries, confident that the quality of the local crop warrants a higher price.
“He became so impressed with the market conditions that he refused these offers and asked $8 a crate for Kennewick berries.”
The tension between local agricultural producers and larger market forces remains a classic struggle in Washington's agrarian economy, showing how Kennewick fruit has been a regional commodity for over a century.
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